"celebration" news and stories

Absinthe drip and sugar cube. Photo: Alex Van Buren.

So we've been all about Bastille Day for the last 24 hours, from petanque to moules frites, brioche burger buns to a gorgeous vegetable tian and even a Francophile-friendly absinthe-spiked cocktail.

We're not the only ones itching to get out the door and toast our friends in the Old Country (or the wonderful eats and drinks they've sent our way). For those who will celebrating the occasion at home, Chow has recipes for three lovely terrines; Serious Eats discovers the tapenades of Provence; and one of Slashfood's own beer columnists breaks down Saison style beer at Gourmet while his colleague tackles eight great aperitifs, several of which are French.

Perhaps the triumph of the online articles, however, is France Magazine's enormous feature on aperitifs. From Lillet to Suze to Noilly Prat, it's all there, and we'll be printing it out and tucking it into our bag. (They've just unlocked the online files especially for Slashfood.) Happy celebrating!

George W. Bush. In the furor of elections, he's become back-page news. And, on January 20, he'll be out of our lives for good. Whether that prospect leaves you elated or crestfallen, you can celebrate it with the "Georgie Is Outta Here!" party in a box.

The set includes paper plates, cups, napkins, balloons, and a tablecloth decorated with our 43rd president's (rather caricatured) visage, as well as games and mock Bush "to do" lists. Suitable for both Republican and Democratic parties, though the latter might appreciate it a little more.

I realize that it is now January 3rd, which might be too late to be writing about all those lucky New Year foods. However, I've really been enjoying reading about all the things that people prepared for themselves to ensure an auspicious New Year and thought I might share a couple that I particularly liked with you all.

The video you see above is from Chris and Michelle, who decided to make pork chops and sauerkraut to commemorate their New Year (an Italian tradition). They also made some delicious-looking mashed potatoes and homemade applesauce (I love it when people make their own applesauce, as it is just so easy and so much better than the stuff that comes out of the jar). The sauerkraut song that they used as background music is also totally infectious.

Over at the Perfect Pantry, Lydia posted a recipe from Arlo, one of her readers, for Boullets, which is a New Year's meatball soup, traditional to Arlo's Cree and Metis roots. It consists of a large pot of meatballs (the size depends entirely on you) in a broth. The post explains that there is no definitive recipe for this dish, that it changes depending on who is making it. It was always made in large quantities for the New Year, so that every visitor who stopped by could be welcomed and fed.

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So we're in the final stretch of 2007 and it's time to start thinking about what you're going to eat on New Year's Day to set the tone for the rest of your year. In the South, it is considered good luck to eat black-eyed peas on New Year's Day because they are thought to symbolize wealth (because they look like little coins when cooked). They also swell when they are cooked, which is another sign of prosperity. Cabbage is also an auspicious item to eat on the new year, as it's leaves can also look like cash.

After the jump is my friend Jacqueline's recipe for a dish she calls Southern Cavier. It's a blend of canned black eyed peas, Rotel tomatoes, peppers, corn and cilantro and it just delicious. It's best eaten with tortilla chips or along side a great piece of corn bread. The first time she brought it to a potluck we all fell on it like we'd never eaten before and later begged for the recipe. It's a tasty way to get these auspicious legumes into your diet.

Back in the early 1970's my parents lived in Santa Cruz, CA. They had a neighbor who would make a yeasted lemon bread for prosperity and good luck in the new year. My mom remembers it as being small round loaves that were sweet but not cake-y, with raisins and chopped nuts. At the time she did get the recipe, but in last 35 years, the scrap of paper on which the recipe was written has walked away.

She has an itch to make this bread again this year, but after much googling and flipping through cookbooks, we haven't been able to find anything that seems quite right. We know that this bread was traditional to whatever area of the world that this neighbor's family originally came from, but again, we don't know for sure. So, does this New Year's bread ring any bells for any of you out there? If so, we'd love to see your recipe! (Or, if you just have a really good recipe for a yeasted lemon bread with fruit and nuts, that would work too).

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